


Fragmented Athanasia

by Soikia



Series: Athanasia [1]
Category: A.C.E (Beat Interactive Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, M/M, Mentions of blood but they're vague when brought up, oof aint that relationship tag...somethin'
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 14:32:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12583936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soikia/pseuds/Soikia
Summary: Athanasia; noun; meaning deathlessness or immortality.It's not that their lives are uneventful. They're plenty eventful. Just three weeks ago they went out on a random vacation to some resort six hundred miles away because they could. That's what it's like, being near immortal. It's the freedom to do everything you never thought possible in your human life.At least. That's how Seyoon thinks.But there are times where life seems all too fragile and delicate. Where the feeling of being immortal and untouchable is yanked from them. Which is exactly what happened to Yoochan and Junhee.Seyoon and the others are just trying to cope with it all. It goes about as well as one might expect.





	Fragmented Athanasia

**Author's Note:**

> I told y'all it was going to be long. This is the e d i t e d v e r s i o n. The original would've maxed out at 24k. 
> 
> Anyways! Happy Halloween! Or, if you don't celebrate Halloween, here's a (not so) spooky fic for you all. In reality I just kind of wanted to dabble in a poly fic that also included vampires, so, you know. 
> 
> There's nothing really....scary about this. It's just my spin on the vampiric world and all those little fun odds and ends. I rather enjoyed writing this~ I kind of want to write a prequel for this AU and make it a chaptered thing. That won't happen until Heartbeats is finished, though. 
> 
> The ending is a bit meh to me but i wanted to get this out on time so.
> 
> If you read all of this in one sitting, I commend your attention span. It took me all of yesterday to edit it. <3

Seyoon’s ears are ringing. 

The sounds in this cacophonous room are buzzing about him, hammering into his brain as if he were trapped within a movie theater with faulty volume control. 

It makes him want to tear his hair out and scream, to yell at everyone to shut up, to close their damn mouths if they know what’s good for them. Yet he can’t. This is court. This is politics and straight backs with neutral faces.

Court. They shouldn’t be at court.

He feels a flutter of anger rise up in Byeongkwan next to him. It pulses in his ears, radiates and makes Seyoon want to slam someone’s head into the polished banister.

But he can’t. Because they’re in fucking court.

Yoochan flits nervously at his other side, pressed close. He had wanted to stay home, back at their little cul-de-sac. Seyoon had wanted him to stay home too, the poor boy has never been built for politics and the justice system.

Donghun stands at a marble lectern in the middle of the room. They’re only ten feet apart from each other, but Seyoon aches to reach out and ask for them to trade places with each other. But when Yoochan presses ever closer to his side, he instinctively wraps an arm around him to keep him there. 

He would pull Byeongkwan close, hold him next to him with the same grip that he has on the other, but holding a pissy Byeongkwan is like trying to approach a cornered animal. Someone always gets scratched.

And it’s usually Byeongkwan that does the scratching.

He forces himself to sit back and breath. He doesn’t necessarily need to do that - he doesn’t necessarily _need_ the air, but it’s an old habit that they’ve all retained. Junhee says that it helps keep them grounded, remind them who they once were.

He cringes at the thought of Junhee, thinks of him back home in bed - the whole reason why they’re here is because of what happened to him.

Seyoon lets his eyes close and back straighten up as he uses his free hand to gently run his nails down Byeongkwan’s back to prompt him to do the same.

His eyes only open when he hears the clicking of heels and a hush fall over all the others chattering. He can feel the gaze of everyone slip over onto the bench the three of them are sat on. If this were a normal court case, they’d call themselves plaintiffs. But they can’t. 

At the lectern, Donghun shuffles a bit and fixes his posture. He’s lost in a sea of dark blue satin robes and dresses as the committee shuffles in and around him to go take their seats at the front.

“Lee Donghun.” One of them announces after a few moments of seemingly organized shuffling among the group. “It is nice to see you, even if it is on strange terms.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Donghun responds after a moment, voice polite. “Strange terms they are.”

The woman just nods, turning her gaze over towards where Seyoon and the other two are sitting. His hand involuntarily reaches to squeeze at Byeongkwan’s knee while the other smoothes down Yoochan’s shirt.

Seyoon has never liked the court. It’s outdated in a good handful of its beliefs. A little over four years ago it finally rolled over one of the eldest rules: if a coven (or pack or colony, depending on what species is under the microscope) wishes to claim the territory you live on, they're legally allowed to do it as long as they have double the amount of your own family.

It was a nasty rule, one he had seen far too often in his life. They're modernized, now. A rule like that is inhumane.

It passed the needed amount of favoring votes by one hundred votes. Only those on the official registry of recognized covens were allowed to vote.

Otherwise, he fears that the rule wouldn’t have been overturned. Many of the other family units that aren’t officially recognized tend to stay within the older ways. There’s surely an illegal version of the court system running rampant within that community. He pulls himself from those thoughts.

He can’t think about that right now.

“You say you come in with a complaint. Normally, it would be the coven leader’s job to go about that, wouldn’t it?” The woman drawls as she graciously takes a large black book from one of the others beside her. He squints a bit in her direction searching for her name amongst the thousands he’s had to learn throughout his whole life. 

Ah, Hyuna. She’s just styled her hair differently. Normally, she’s some variation of a red head. Brown hair looks nice too, though.

It makes more sense as he scopes through the people settled next to her. He recognizes Hwitaek’s group, the slim coven leader sitting tall and proud. Hyojong sits next to him, posture slumped. It's as if he doesn’t want to be there. Hah. Seyoon feels him.

On her other side, he sees Seunghee. Now he doesn’t know much about her or her family, but he knows that they’re newly instated in the community. She had been the biggest advocate for the rule to get overturned four years ago.

He notices Hyuna’s gaze flicker through the pages of the book, presumably searching for their file.

The court has different batches of committees for whatever species takes up a grievance. There are even some mixed committees in the case that species start problems with each other. 

Hyuna’s glance up towards Donghun’s lectern seems to prod Donghun back into the moment.

“Yes, normally it is the coven leader that comes up with the grievance.” Donghun replies coolly. “Unfortunately, he is not in a condition to speak with you at present, which is why I am here.”

“He has given you permission to speak for him?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Mm.” Is all Hyuna says as she slips a sheet of paper out of the book. “You hardly come to the court, your last recorded appointment was two years ago - when Jinhoo’s coven made a bit of a ruckus near your home.”

“Yes, ma’am. We settled that here when we learned that they had moved because of an arson related incident at their old place.” Donghun says. “There has been no issues since.”

“So you’re not here for a follow up complaint?”

“No.” Donghun says. 

Hyuna gazes at him before her eyes slide over to the bench again. “Then, what is it for this time?”

“An attack on our coven.” 

Short and simple. If the room weren’t silent already, Seyoon figures that this would shut everyone up in a heartbeat.

Haha, heartbeat.

Byeongkwan practically vibrates next to him until Seyoon pats his leg a few times.

“An attack?” Hyuna repeats.

“Yes.” 

The sound of talking - some exclamations and some confusion - rises throughout those who have come to spectate. It makes Seyoon wish that this could just be a private affair.

But the rules dictate that there need to be at least six covens (or coven representatives) at any trial - whether it’s over territory or attacks. These six don’t include the two that Hyuna has next to her. He glances around at the seats, able to pick out at least seven coven leaders that he is aware of.

Of course there would be more for them, they’re the weird ones of the officiated covens. Oddballs that everyone wants to ogle at. 

He sees Donghun’s fists ball up on the top of the lectern. 

“Go on and explain, dear.” Hyuna says simply, curiosity piqued.

Donghun sends a glance around at those spectating, clearing his throat.

“Four days ago, in the hours of one and two on Saturday morning, our coven leader Park Junhee was attacked while out in the rural area of Abiline City approximately ten miles from our home in the gated neighborhood of Fora. They were coming back from a night together at once of the fancier blood banks there and had decided to walk home since they'd taken a cab there.” Donghun starts cautiously, as if afraid that he’d be cut off at any moment. “I was back at the home when I received a distress call from Yoochan -”

“Pardon my intrusion.” Hwitaek speaks up, looking at Hyuna for permission before continuing. “Was the distress from a mental connection or?”

Donghun takes a steadying breath. “A cell phone.”

Hwitaek just nods, seemingly sated. 

That’s not true in the slightest. There is a deeper connection than what everyone assumes there is, but Junhee doesn’t want them to be stared at or bombarded with a ton of questions. 

“Of course it wouldn’t be a mental connection - none of them are legitimate makers or progeny other than the two youngsters.” Someone pipes up from the crowd.

Seyoon forces himself to remain still. Junhee would not be happy if he found out that Seyoon disturbed a court meeting. He has to physically hold both Byeongkwan and Yoochan tight enough to keep them from getting up. Mainly Byeongkwan. Christ, they should’ve left him at home.

“Quiet.” Hyuna scolds the crowd pointedly, much like a teacher might scold a bunch of unruly students. “Go on, Donghun.”

“As I was saying, I was called by Yoochan shortly after the attack. Both of them had been rather beaten up, which I don’t wish to deeply discuss unless absolutely needed. I managed to help get them both home and to rest by around four in the morning. Yoochan healed well, aside from one persisting magic infested burn on his left side.” Donghun continues, pausing once Hyuna raises her hand politely.

“Is that being treated?” She asks, leaning forward to rest her hands on the oak wood desk in front of her.

“To the best of our abilities, ma’am. Every magic user tends to alter a spell to have it more fitting to them, so until we know exactly what variation of fire spell was used, we can’t clear it up completely.” Donghun recites tactfully and Seyoon has to repress rolling his eyes. That’s what the doctor they saw said. That was two nights ago. 

Hyuna just nods, flipping through a few more pages in the book. “And Junhee?”

“That’s the reason we’re here to complain, ma’am.” He says gravely. “Junhee did not seem to suffer much the night of the attack, however the night after the attack he randomly collapsed within our home. The spell was dormant in his body during the day, but shortly after he woke up it started to work.”

“Has a doctor -” Hyuna starts.

“Yes. We’ve had a friend of ours come and monitor him. They said that the spell was much like Yoochan’s burn, but it was all interior damage. His own body is basically attacking him. Every time he seems to heal, it’s back to fighting against him again. Our friend says that if he was any younger, it would’ve killed him.” He explains, fidgeting slightly. “So right now our friend is at our home monitoring him in hopes to try and figure something out. But we feel it isn’t enough.”

“What would you like to do?” It’s Hwitaek that pipes up again, sitting up straighter. 

“I want to have a case opened. There’s no culprit yet but - I want an investigation launched, this is a direct attack on our cover leader with probable intent to kill. Our youngest was also injured. This was no random attack.” Donghun says steadily.

“But if it were a magic user, why not open a case with one of the departments that deals with magic users as well?” Hwitaek asks, sneaking a glance at Hyuna to make sure he’s doing everything right.

It’s kind of obvious that Hyuna’s grooming Hwitaek to take over her position once she ultimately retires. Seyoon just wishes that they wouldn’t use their case as a stepping stone.

“The thing is -” Donghun hesitates. “The thing is that Yoochan believes that this magic user has had a rather close experience with vampires. He said that they seemed a bit too familiar with the area - which is predominantly a vampire hunting ground in the rural parts. Mages would rarely travel through there without intent. I know that mage and vampire partnerships exist, but rarely do they attack someone else. Usually they’re there to try to keep the community safe. I feel like something has gone wrong with this one. So I was thinking that we could perhaps launch a statement out to get in contact with all of those people who have connections to the mage community to let us know -”

“Donghun.” Hyuna says, retaking control from Hwitaek. “You’re asking us to probe a community of mages based purely off assumption.”

“Hardly that, ma’am, we do have proof of an attack -”

“But no proof that this mage was in connection to a coven. It’s a risky wager and could anger several elders. I understand that what happened was a travesty and I do hope that Junhee recovers well -” Hyuna continues in a firm tone. It reminds Seyoon of how Junhee used to scold Byeongkwan and Yoochan back in the day.

“Recovers well?” A new voice echoes out. “Recovers well, really?”

Oh no.

It didn’t register at first, but now Byeongkwan is no longer sitting. Seyoon’s hand has been thrown back into his own lap as the younger stands up next to him.

“So we sit here and twiddle our damn thumbs and go ‘gee, I hope our coven leader is able to live to see the end of the year’ - that’s what you want us to do?” Byeongkwan snaps. “Let my progeny suffer with a magic enhanced burn while our leader goes through the same kind of burn ravaging his fucking organs because you don’t want to question the one community we think is responsible -”

“Sit down, Byeongkwan.” Seyoon hisses out, moving to grab the other's wrist.

Byeongkwan calmly and effortlessly pushes his hand off of his wrist.

“Furthermore - ‘it could anger several elders’? Why do you seemingly care more about the happiness of some covens getting questioned than you do about two of our own getting attacked? I’m sure you’d be raising hell if the two covens next to you were attacked.” Byeongkwan grinds out. “I get that you have to tiptoe around some covens because they’re big influences in our community, but don’t you dare say that this doesn’t deserve a proper look into all because you’re scared of ruffling some feathers!”

“Byeongkwan.” Seyoon tries again, moving to yank the other down onto the bench again. He launches his hand up into the other’s hair, pushing his head down so that he’s looking at the floor instead of Hyuna. Seyoon in turn bows his head as well, nudging Yoochan into doing the same.

An apology submission. 

He hates having to do them - but they’re a necessity when a part of your coven acts up like that in court. He can still recall the sharp sting of pain as Donghun shoved his and Junhee’s head down back when Junhee had gotten testy with the court officials decades ago.

They had never been to court before that moment. Much like Byeongkwan has only been to court once or twice. It’s a harsh way to learn etiquette. But it’s necessary.

Any and all noise in the court returns to deafening silence. Seyoon finds himself tempted to pray that Hyuna doesn’t dismiss them right then and there.

“Raise your heads.” Is all he needs to hear. Slowly and surely he lefts go of his firm grasp on the back of Byeongkwan’s head. As he raises his own, he can see Donghun do the same from where he’s standing.

Something in the back of his head stirs, a fizzle of a connection that’s tugging in the direction of home. It’s not as strong as it usually is, but for a moment he can feel the flare of white hot pain wash over his whole body.

Ah, a scolding from Junhee. They don’t get those often. 

He and Donghun share a glance as the younger ones beside Seyoon squint through their share of the pain. 

Yeah, that whole ‘non-blood bonded covens can’t have mental connection’ argument is bullshit. Utter bullshit. Not like the committee needs to know that though. 

“I apologize for him, ma’am.” Donghun says to cut through the tense silence. “He’s riled up from it all.”

“It’s...understandable.” She replies after a moment, steepling her fingers together. “It’ll be overlooked this time around.” She says, much to Donghun and Seyoon’s relief.

The younger ones of their little coven don’t quite get how bad it’d be for a punishment to be enacted. It could range from having to sit in every trial for the rest of the year to getting their official documents revoked - thus causing them to lose everything. Their gated community, their house, their investments, the blood banks and the doctors - everything.

“I still do not support the idea of going directly to the mage community as of yet - especially those who are in close connections to some of the covens. However, I will submit a formal inquiry to ask for any information regarding some suspicious activity. Does that sound reasonable to you?” Hyuna asks.

“Yes ma’am, we’d appreciate anything you can do for us.” Donghun says formally, back impossibly straight. 

“Then that’s what I’ll do. I’ll also send one of Hwitaek’s coven members to your house and he will take in a full report. Perhaps you could even show him the area in which the attack happened?”

“Of course. When could we expect him?” Donghun asks.

“Give us time to sort everything out. Until then, keep your coven attentive to their surroundings and continue to administer all the medical attention you possibly can. I do hope for a speedy recovery.” Hyuna says, shutting the book in front of her. “With that settled, court dismissed.”

He feels all the forced politeness drain from his body in an instant. In a blink of an eye, he yanks the two younger ones up and off the bench and eyes the crowds of people descending. Donghun is still standing at the lectern - but he is not alone. 

At some point within the last few seconds, Hyuna has joined him there in the center of the room. Hwitaek’s and Seunghee’s covens have joined the mass exitus, perhaps going to retire to their glitzy parlors within the government building. 

If he could just get Byeongkwan and Yoochan out of the courtroom to scold them -

“Seyoon!” Donghun calls over the sound of footsteps and chatter. “Hyuna wishes to speak with the both of us!”

Of course. 

He glances at the two younger ones, grasping their napes just a little tighter as he guides them through to the exit, pushing them out into the hallway.

“Don’t give anyone any details about what happened that weren’t addressed in the court. Sit down and wait for us and be thankful that I’m too stressed to properly scold you.” He hisses out, low and threatening.

Byeongkwan has the decency to look embarrassed. Yoochan just looks ready to sob.

Seyoon tugs deftly on the sleeves of his dress shirt, taking a moment to fix his hair and take on a calmer aura before turning with a great flourish and pushing through the dwindling crowd to re-enter the room.

He can’t say that he’s thrilled to see Hyuna chatting with Donghun upon re-entry. Nor is he thrilled when she looks up to wave him over. Still he strides over with quickly, maintaining as proper as a posture as he could. 

“Good evening, Seyoon.” She greets lightly, voice somehow different from when she was hosting the trial just a few minutes ago. “I’m sorry we meet like this.”

“As am I.” He assents, licking his lips. “I apologize for Byeongkwan’s explosive temperament.”

She just tsks lightly, waving his apology off with a flippant hand. 

“It is expected of the younger generation. I suppose he - and all of you - are under a great deal of stress right now.” Her voice has a layer of genuine concern to it, which Seyoon finds himself appreciating. “And I assume it must’ve not been easy to accept the role of coven leader at this point in time.”

“No, ma’am. It feels very...foreign.” Donghun decides. “Like I’m not supposed to be leader.”

“Yet you have to, for the sake of court presence.” She sympathizes. “Is Junhee’s condition as bad as Byeongkwan made it sound?”

“Unfortunately. It was best described to us as a fire under his skin, but lacking flames to truly burn him alive, but you can see bruises linger before his body catches up with the healing process. It’s just eating away all his energy - he’s been..looking rather gaunt lately. He’s tired.” Donghun murmurs, looking down at the lectern. “He’s trying to - to - you know. Be strong. Play it all off. But the spark isn’t there anymore.”

Hyuna makes a small noise of distress, reaching out to lightly stroke Donghun’s arm. 

“A grave tragedy this is, then.” She says, casting a glance at the empty court room. “If things were - were different. Different rules in place. I could order a mandatory surveillance of all mages in connection to covens. But that is seen as an invasion of privacy.” She sighs out. “This is worrying, I’m not sure what I’m doing will be enough.”

“We’re thankful that you’re at least willing to send in a request for information.” Seyoon assures. 

All the while, Seyoon can feel the light mental tug in the back of his mind. The tug of Yoochan finally bursting into tears just outside the double doors, Byeongkwan’s panicked response. 

Junhee’s tired comfort, laying thick over all their minds. 

Most of all, Junhee’s tired plea for them to come home. They’re all, frankly, very independent. But at times like this - it feels wrong to be split up. 

He swallows involuntarily.

“You have a lot on your mind.” Hyuna hums. “Perhaps it is not a good idea to tell you, but your case isn’t the first.”

“It’s not?” Donghun asks.

“No. Perhaps…” She trails off, eyes looking towards the ceiling. “Perhaps a little over four months ago, the council got an anonymous tip that something had started to smell foul within a neighboring county. So we had a few people venture out there and, well,” 

“Well?” Seyoon finds himself prompting, though he assumes that he knows the answer already.

“Bodies - of a whole coven.” She doesn’t meet their eyes, instead looking right in between them. “A coven of eight, if I remember well. Non-official. Though I did know of them in passing - they were trying to get onto the registry, but something always fell through for them. A faulty inspection, lack of paperwork, rowdy progeny. They were scheduled to come up in December. Obviously, something got them first.”

“Terrible.” Donghun says through a strained voice. “Horrific, even.”

“Yes.” Hyuna agrees. “We ended up studying what was - what was left of the bodies. Magic residue was found among some of the older members of the coven. The younger ones seemingly died of starvation.” 

“Were they old enough to go out and feed on their own?” 

“Yes. We think - we think they were too scared to.” She muses quietly. “The house had security cameras that caught someone walking up to the house, but they had a spell that warped their appearance and caused the cameras to go down.”

“And I assume that there were no leads?” Seyoon asks hesitantly.

“None. No one cares about the undocumented covens, much. Which I hope to change. But there’s just so many out there and so few who are willing to try and heed the rules we lay down.” She sighs, moving to rub the back of her neck. “But we do have samples. Of the residue. One of Hwitaek’s members, Hongseok, works within the morgue. He kept it because he’s always been fascinated by magic. I can’t openly say this in court because of how antsy it’d make the covens with mages feel.”

“It’s understandable. Keeping us all on placated terms is a hard job.” Seyoon says, lips twitching slightly. “Have the samples been linked to anyone?”

“No one that’s marked in the system. You know how strict we’ve been with categorizing registered mages and their magic makeups. This is an unregistered one we’re dealing with. Not potent enough to make us worry about mass casualties, but potent enough to cause a few. If we could get their magic cataloged, we could find the proper rebuttal spell from the mage council. They’re infinitely more knowledgeable on magic than we could even dream of being.” She quips.

“So…” Donghun trails off, looking confused. Perhaps more run down than confused. 

“I’m sending one of Hwi’s little gremlins -” She pauses, chuckling at the term of endearment. “- to your place. He’ll take samples from Junhee and Yoochan, if they consent to it. We can run it and at least see if we’re dealing with the same person.” 

“Ah.” It makes sense to Donghun now. “We’d appreciate that.”

“I do my best to help you guys.” She soothes. “I try not to show favoritism among the covens, but you guys have been through a lot. I feel as if I deserve to favor you just a little more.”

“We’re honored, truly.” Seyoon says as he bows his head in gratitude.

“Mm.” Hyuna hums, lips quirking up into a smile. “Just do not tell the other covens of my favoritism, they already threw fits back when I was elected as the head of the council.”

Donghun and Seyoon just nod, offering small smiles in return.

“I release you from this depressing conversation, then. Get your youngest home safe and tell Junhee I wish him well. Keep yourselves safe.” She says, bowing her head to them. “I do not wish to have you in the morgue like I have the other coven.”

“We’ll be careful, ma’am.” Seyoon promises. He means it. As far as he’s concerned, their house should be on lockdown.

“Then be off with you - I’ll arrange one of Hwitaek’s to visit you as soon as the request goes through.” 

With that, she breezes by them, heels clicking as she swings open the double doors. Next to him, he feels Donghun completely deflate, any air of leadership leaking out of him.

“I’m not meant for this role, Seyoon.” He whines pitifully. All Seyoon can do is pull him close and rub his back.

“I hate to say it, but you have to pull it together just until we get home -” He mumbles, maneuvering them so Donghun is pressed up close to him. “- Yoochan and Byeongkwan are both a hairs width away from breaking down. Yoochan’s already crying out there. Byeongkwan has looked ready to punch something since Junhee collapsed.”

“You’ve looked like that, too.” Donghun sighs, pressing his forehead against Seyoon’s. “When they asked how we found out that Junhee and Yoochan were attacked, I - I almost said the truth. Through the mental connection we have.” He murmurs quietly, fearful of others hearing. 

“What stopped you?”

“I could feel Junhee’s panic - I think -” Donghun closes his eyes, moving to pull away. “I think he’s still scared. Of them probing at us or lashing out at us for being even freakier than we already are. ‘Cause according to them we’re not supposed to have a connection.”

Seyoon’s gut twists uncomfortably. He reaches out to lightly push back some of Donghun’s hair.

“Junhee fears that confrontation a lot. We all know it’ll leak one day. But at this point in time, it isn’t wise.” Seyoon reminds him, gently stroking a hand down the other’s face. “Let’s get through this first, and then maybe we can hold a private council with Hyuna before going public.”

Donghun takes in his advice, sucking in a useless breath and squaring his shoulders. After a moment, he opens his eyes, staring at Seyoon with an unreadable expression.

“Let’s get home. Junhee’s been alone too long.”

Seyoon couldn’t agree more. He offers Donghun his hand, squeezing onto the other as soon their fingers intertwine. With that they turn and head for the double doors, stepping out of the stuffy court room and into the hallway.

Yoochan is there in an instant, practically throwing himself against them. The tears have stopped - red streaks staining his face.

Vampires didn’t have properly functioning tear ducts - tears didn’t come easily. Most often there would be dry sobbing involved.

But if one were worked up enough, tears would flow. The lack of water within their systems, however, made their ‘tears’ become unfiltered, thick blood that had yet to travel throughout their whole system yet. Seeing as Yoochan had fed just before the court case, he isn’t surprised to see tears. 

It doesn’t change the twist of agony that Seyoon feels, though.

No words are exchanged as they quietly make their way through the courthouse. Seyoon can’t help but look out the glass ceiling, quietly admiring the starry sky.

The tug of going home ebbs in his mind and he swears he can hear Junhee sigh out in his mind. 

They make it to their car without being stopped by anyone - but they receive stares as they pass others. He hears comments about how none of them are properly bonded except for the ‘brats’. The only thing keeping him from blowing his fuse is how Yoochan looks over at him, offering a shaky smile despite the red tinged tracks going down his face. 

Seyoon drives them home, fearing that Donghun will veer off the mountain road. 

The courthouse is nestled in a lush, plateaued area of the mountain, marking the halfway point to the top. In total - it’s an hour long drive through a curving road that weaves in between forests and sheer cliffs. 

For once, he’s thankful to reach the modernized town at the bottom of the peak. They still have to drive through it to reach their cul-de-sac on the other side, but there’s a familiar relief in seeing neon signs and bustling crowds. Their town is one of the few that has a higher population of vampires compared to people. 

But that makes it a lucrative tourist trap - the vampires here make serious cash off of vampire stereotypes. 

Well, most do. The ones that stay within the busier part of the town. Their little coven makes a nice profit off of selling meals to the said tourists - a small ‘night only’ restaurant that they're temporarily on paid leave from due to the current circumstances. The one place where they managed to get a rule passed that humans were not allowed to be charmed within their building.

That had surely stirred up some covens.

But hey, it made good money. Especially on the rare occasion that they catered for an registered blood bank.

They pull up to their gated community just a few minutes past three in the morning. That leaves a good three or so hours before sunrise, but Seyoon feels too drained to want to go out and roam the streets. 

Instead he fumbles for his ID card in his wallet so he can scan it at the scanner positioned by the gate. 

The gate all but groans when it comes to life, the clicking of its wheels against the asphalt road somehow soothing to him. Their neighborhood lies as immaculate as he remembers it being the first time they came here.

Neighbors are out doing yard work, the few pets that have been allowed inside the community are running around happily. It’s just like the human world, just at the opposite time of the day. 

By all accounts, the neighborhood isn’t large. It’s simply one street that ends with a cul-de-sac. There had been talks about paving another street - but that would involve knocking down some houses and renovating some of the open wilderness behind them. They aren’t too keen on that. Junhee is the one that protested against it the most, actually.

Driving at a slow pace, he sees a few others on the street wave at him as they pass. He’s too tired to wave back. 

Hopefully, they understand why. Many had visited to offer their sympathy, but few had believed that the court would be able to do anything to help them. 

He’s thankful for Hyuna’s favoritism at this point in time. Perhaps not in the future - but it is benefiting them right now. So he’s glad for it.

They pull up and into their driveway in the little house tucked on the curved part of the road. Yoochan and Byeongkwan are already hurdling themselves out of the car before he properly shuts it off, rushing to make their way inside the house. Byeongkwan fiddles with his own key, nearly dropping it as he tries to unlock the door.

Seyoon, meanwhile, barely registers that he’s turned the engine off and put the car in park. For a moment, nothing seems real - he feels kind of floaty, stomach flipping as he stares at the lit up room on the second floor. Junhee’s room. 

A hand grips his thigh, giving it a rough squeeze. It pulls him back into his mind. He forces himself to suck in a breath, turning his head to look at Donghun. Donghun in turn just offers a small, tired smile as he squeezes Seyoon’s thigh again - lighter this time. 

No words are shared as they climb out of the car. Donghun goes on ahead of him, perhaps eager to get into the house.

A breeze tampers with his hair. He knows fairly well that it’s freezing for humans; he saw tons of them bundled up in thick coats on the way home. Yet to him - to all of them - it feels nothing more than a light chill, settling over him comfortably. 

His gaze flickers up to the lit window, watching as a shadow blocks it for a split second. Is it their friend or one of them? Could it be Junhee, perhaps getting up and using what energy he has to go greet them?

He cocks his head, straining. They all know each other’s footsteps by memory now - so many years with one another makes you learn that. 

Ah. Byeongkwan. For some reason, it doesn’t surprise him. Under the cocky attitude and stress, Byeongkwan was just as worried as the rest of them. Maybe more-so. Maybe he feels some of the guilt that Yoochan must feel. There’s hardly anything worth feeling guilty over - they couldn’t have prevented it. 

Yoochan.

Poor boy. He probably does blame himself. It wasn’t often that they went to that specific town, they stuck to the feeding parlor within their own area for the most part. But Yoochan had kept insisting that they go somewhere else for once.

And Junhee had relented.

And now Junhee was, metaphorically, crippled.

Part of him wants to be mad at Yoochan. Part of him wants to be mad at Junhee. But he can’t bring himself to do it.

So instead he locks the car and strides towards the front door, nudging it open and slamming it closed. Tension ebbs from his shoulders once he’s inside. 

Maybe it’s best that they don’t go out for the next few nights. For his sake. Learning of the murdered coven has put him on edge. 

He finds himself locking the door before toeing off his shoes and walking through the foyer, past the curio cabinet that holds all the precious items they like to have on display. Like the five dog collars, all carefully placed in front of several photos of the dogs that once got to wear them.

Life is such a fleeting thing when you’re a vampire. Dogs are supposed to be man’s best friend - yet Seyoon feels as if he blinked through all their pets lives.

They weren’t even proper pets - they were strays they took in because no one had the heart to say no. 

He finds Yoochan sitting at the kitchen island, swiveling in the chair and kicking his legs listlessly. When he’s alerted to Seyoon’s presence he jerks his head up, moving to wipe at his eyes.

“Donghun and Byeongkwan are up in Junhee’s room.” He mumbles, sniffling a bit. “I guess it’s to explain the snappiness that Byeognkwan had at court today. We both forgot that Junhee can feel when our tempers flare.” 

“We all can.” Seyoon soothes, moving to pat down some of the fluffier parts of the younger's hair. “Junhee just gets the brunt of it. With the condition he’s in now, it was probably draining for him -”

Yoochan just makes a pathetic little noise in the back of his throat. If there was any sign that Seyoon should’ve kept his mouth shut, it had to be that.

But it was too late. 

“None of this would’ve happened if I hadn’t been a brat and asked to go out to that town. We wouldn’t have been coming home through that area and -”

“Hush.” Seyoon grunts. “You didn’t know it would happen.”

“But-”

“Sh. It doesn’t do anyone any good for you to blame yourself.” He says, tugging at the other so he would lean closer to him. “But for the next few days I want us to stay within the house, okay?”

“Why?” Yoochan asks, cocking his head up to look at him.

Because there’s a potential murderer that killed another coven. Because it might be the same person. Because he’s scared of losing his loved ones.

“Maybe all our energy will make Junhee feel better.” He finally says, lie thick on his tongue. If Yoochan catches it, he doesn’t comment. Instead he just nods and presses closer. “How is your burn, though?”

“It doesn’t hurt. It’s just itchy.” Yoochan mumbles. “Donghun said he’ll talk to Juho about it.”

“Mm.” Seyoon hums. Juho is their friend - and doctor. He works at a pharmacy at night, specialized for vampires.

They may be sturdier than humans, but viruses exist even amongst them. 

But the mention of the burn does remind him of the conversation earlier.

“Hyuna is sending someone by in the next few days. They may want to take a sample of the magic on your burn.” He throws out carefully. 

“How do they do that?” 

“Well...I’m not sure. I should’ve asked.” Seyoon sighs. “But if it’s something you’re comfortable with, will you let them take a sample?”

“Will it help Junhee?” Is Yoochan’s question, voice suddenly more light hearted. “I’ll do it if it helps Junhee. Also me I guess. But Junhee first.”

Seyoon wishes he could say yes. 

But that could possibly turn out to be one of the most painful lies he’ll have ever told. 

Still he forces on a smile. 

“Any little bit of information they get could help.” He just hopes that Yoochan believes it more than he does.

Yoochan just nods against him before pulling away, scrubbing at his face one last time.

“I want you to have some blood before you go to bed, alright? Just a bit. Crying can run you dryer than you think.” Seyoon advises, soothing down Yoochan’s hair one more time. “I don’t want you getting hunger cramps on top of all the stress.”

“Okay.” Yoochan says, casting a wayward look at the fridge. “I think Juho will probably want to talk to you. Donghun said that he’d probably want to discuss stuff with you two before coming to check on me.”

Seyoon just nods, leaning down to kiss the top of Yoochan’s head. He breathes in the scent of his shampoo, taking comfort in the rosy smell. 

Not long after he’s trailing his hand along the wall as he walks upstairs, eyeing Byeongkwan as he makes his way downstairs. 

“No more going out tonight.” Seyoon says simply. Byeongkwan just looks at him for a moment, perhaps a bit more sullen and put out than when he was in the car. “I want you to get Chan in bed early, too.”

Byeongkwan just nods once more and breezes past him, footfalls practically silent on the carpet of the staircase.

Junhee’s room is the only one with the door cracked open, light filtering out of it. He can hear low voices, Juho’s deep rumble and Donghun’s softer one. He steels himself before he knocks once and enters the room. In truth - he had not spent more than five minutes in that room since Junhee first got sick.

It hurt him too much to see him the first night.

It hurts just as much now. 

The light is from the nightstand, brightening the room enough to set some sort of mood lighting. Normally it’d be a peaceful one. 

Juho is standing with a proper posture, sharp figures of his face captured perfectly in the light. He’s always looked like the stereotypical vampire to Seyoon. Gaunt but sharp with a lean and tall frame. When he was younger (and human), his mind would’ve created an image scarily close to Juho’s appearance when he thought of the word vampire.

The man in question turns his head towards Seyoon, dipping his head in greeting. 

“Seyoon.” He says, voice low. “I heard that Byeongkwan got a little testy at court today.”

“Unfortunately.” Seyoon responds. He makes it a point to not look at the bed. “How is he?”

“Better today.” Juho says. “He had enough energy to get up and shower while I ran down to the pharmacy.” 

“Still nothing?” 

“Mm. I gave him some pain relievers today when I got back - so he’s sleeping right now. The dose was strong.” The other sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. “Donghun said that Hyuna will have someone come check him and Yoochan out?”

“Yeah. One or two of Hwi’s coven members.” 

Juho nods. “Want me to be here on that day?”

“It’d..it’d be nice, yes.” Donghun pipes up. Seyoon honestly forgot he was here. He had been so focused on not looking at the bed that he had tuned out the fact that Donghun had been sitting at the edge of it, sitting by the pillows and stroking the hair out of Junhee’s face.

He focuses his eyes away again, throat clenching. 

“Alright, just call me on the day they show up, then.”

The two nod in tandem, glancing at each other the slightest amount. 

“You don’t have to come around tomorrow night, we’ll be here to deal with everything. Besides, I know it’s Rowoon’s turning anniversary, right?”

The gaunt vampire nods, face offering a small hint of happiness. “Yes. Four hundred years old - what an oldie.”

“If I remember correctly, you’re three hundred and eighty one.” Donghun says smartly, turning the somber mood into a brighter one. Seyoon feels relief at that, for the time being.

“Oh hush.” Juho huffs, laughing slightly. “I always forget how young you guys are compared to me. You’re barely pushing one hundred and twenty, aren’t you Donghun?”

“One hundred at fifteen, actually -” Donghun grins. “And Yoochan is just getting prepared to turn thirty.”

“Fucking hell.” Juho snorts. “You young covens and your boundless youth.” 

“It’s what we do best.” Seyoon says, managing a small grin. “Oh - you said earlier that you wanted to check on Chan, right?”

“Oh! Yes!” Juho says, quickly quieting down when he glances at the bed. “Where is he?”

“Kitchen. He’s a little emotional right now, so if you two talk..” Seyoon pauses, pursing his lips. “Keep it a light and happy conversation, alright?”

Juho just nods, bowing his head. “If I don’t see you before I leave, have a good night.” 

Donghun and Seyoon just bow their heads back, waiting for Juho to leave. 

Silence hangs in the air as Seyoon finally looks over to the bed. He takes in the familiar maroon satin sheets, the familiar abundance of pillows. Far too many for just one person in the bed, but Junhee hardly slept alone.

And then Junhee himself, shadowed by Donghun’s frame. His hair is splayed out on the pillow on the pillow as if it were a halo. 

“It’s been awhile since you’ve been in here, hm?” Donghun asks, trailing a hand down Junhee’s cheek. “I’m a bit surprised that you came in.”

“I figured -” What did he figure? “I figured it was time.”

“Mm.” Is all Donghun replies with, moving to stand up and make his way over to Seyoon. He gently tugs at Seyoon’s shirt, smoothing it down before moving to smooth down the messier parts of his hair as well. “He’s asked how you and the others were doing the last few nights - Yoochan’s too scared to visit him.”

Now Seyoon just feels bad, stomach rolling uncomfortably. “I - why is Yoochan scared?”

“He thinks Junhee will disown him or something stupid.” Donghun remarks idly, hands drifting down to ghost over Seyoon’s shoulders until he grasps onto his sides, tapping his fingers idly. “I told him that you were busy keeping them under control.”

“In a way, that’s true.”

“So you have been sleeping in their room.” The other says absently. “No wonder I didn’t hear you moving around in yours.”

Seyoon just nods, struggling to figure out what he wants to say. 

“I think it’s more for my own comfort than theirs.” Is what he settles on, lifting his arms to wrap around Donghun’s middle. “I was - I was having nightmares about -”

“- him not waking up one night?” 

Seyoon doesn’t want to look Donghun in the eyes. So he casts his gaze to the floor, avoiding as much possible contact. 

“I had dreams like that too.” Donghun admits. “I would wake up randomly throughout the day and fear that I wouldn’t feel the connection in the back of my head.” 

It’s hard, telling when a vampire passes away from something other than getting murdered. Their heartbeats are near non-existent and it isn't uncommon for vampires to go without a heartbeat entirely. It was just the luck of the draw. 

And without a breathing reflex, how can you know that you’re sleeping next to a live vampire or a dead one?

The best way is through the mental connection, the wires that anchor them all together. If it were to be severed in any way, well, it’d be easy to tell. 

Everything is much more sensitive when you’re connected to your coven. Being severed from it - well - it feels like a lightning bolt running up your spine, scatter shotting into your brain as a signal that something terrible has happened. 

Donghun and Seyoon both know exactly how that feels.

“Yet he’s still kicking.” Seyoon soothes after a moment. He tugs Donghun a little closer, gently pressing their foreheads together. “He’s Junhee. The same guy that casually slipped arsenic into our house contractor’s drink after he made a snide comment about us being unbonded -”

“And did it with a smile on his face.”

“Mhm.” Seyoon says, nodding a bit. “So this - this is just a bit of a bigger problem, but nothing he can’t fight through. Plus we have Juho and Hyuna helping us out.”

Donghun nods, tracing patterns into his sides. “You’re right.”

“Of course.”

Donghun just laughs lightly. “I told Junhee that you wanted us to stay indoors for the next few days. He’s okay with it.”

“How did you -” Seyoon starts, mouth shutting instinctively when Donghun goes to tap lightly against his head. “- oh.”

“Yep.” Donghun breathes out, breath ghosts along Seyoon’s skin. “I didn’t think you’d come up here, so.”

Seyoon, in all honesty, didn’t think he would either. The world works in mysterious ways. 

“Why don’t you stay with him tonight. I’ll watch our gremlin boys. Maybe you staying with Junhee will convince Yoochan to do the same. He’s still easily influenced as such a young vamp.” Donghun says, wrapping his arms around Seyoon’s shoulders. “Plus it might be good for you and Junhee to have some alone time. I know it’s not the best of circumstances, but it could be healing for the both of you.”

He doesn’t really have much to say against the idea, so he just nods a minuscule amount. Donghun’s lip quirk into a small smile, leaning in to kiss Seyoon once, twice, three times.

Seyoon, suddenly remembering how much he’s missed the comfort of Donghun’s affection, kisses back.

Donghun leans back, smiling wide as he unwinds his arms from Seyoon’s shoulders, wiggling free.

“I’ll go check on Chan and Juho.” He says, patting Seyoon’s hip lightly before whisking himself out of the room.

Seyoon is left feeling content for only a moment. The stark reality sets in on him when the door clicks shut behind Donghun. It leaves him alone in a quiet room that feels more like a hospital ward than Junhee’s bedroom. 

He creeps closer to the bed, fearful of waking the other. The bruising wasn’t apparent when Donghun’s shadow was casted over him.

But now, in the low and warm glow, the bruises become visible. There’s something disgustingly intricate with how the bruises weave up along the exposed parts of skin, clambering up his neck and mottling his face and lips. 

Yet they fade in mere minutes because of their advanced healing. There’s a twisting, static feeling of magic fizzling around Junhee - in Junhee. If Seyoon weren’t a bit well versed in magic, he’d thing that he’d get zapped.

He brings his fingers up to lightly touch the bruises that have started to fade along Junhee’s cheek. They were probably purple mere minutes ago, but now they’re a sickening yellow as they’re thrust into advanced stages of healing.

How much did it hurt? How tiring was it for their poor leader?

Seyoon retracts his fingers. The medicinal and clinical feeling in the room is suffocating. So he is going to change that.

He busies himself with moving along the second floor of their house, taking armfuls of candles and different books to Junhee’s room throughout several trips. 

It isn’t until there’s a plusher blanket over Junhee’s bed, twelve candles lit and a safe distance from anything flammable and a fair stack of books on Junhee’s bedside table that Seyoon can pat himself on the back for a job well done. He’s even wasting a bit of his phone battery to play natural sounds on the quietest setting.

There.

Now this, this is how Junhee’s room is supposed to feel.

He crawls into bed next to Junhee as carefully as possible, freezing whenever a dip in the bed jostles the other a bit. 

The clock on wall marks that it is five in the morning. One hour before sunrise.

It’s a little early for Seyoon - he’s often awake during the dawn of the new day, enjoying the feeling of trying to out race the sun. It’s not like the sun would make him burst into a pile of ashes immediately (that seemed to be a popular narrative among TV shows these days) - it would happen eventually, but he also wasn’t a damn idiot. 

The sun just made him tired, mainly. Much like the night time made humans sleepy.

Next to him, Junhee turns towards him and cracks open his eyes. A sleepy noise is ripped from his throat as he yawns, fangs glinting in the low light.

“Did I wake you?” Seyoon asks quietly, reaching over to gently push the bangs away from Junhee’s face.

“You’re physically quiet but mentally loud.” Junhee mumbles. “I dunno what you’re thinking about, but I can feel it like static in my mind. Kinda like how I can feel that Byeongkwan’s still pissy.”

“He’ll get over it. He’s just stressed.” Seyoon assures, chuckling lightly either way. “How are you feeling?”

“I can’t lie and say that I feel fine, huh?”

“No.”

“Then bad.” Junhee says immediately, inching closer. “Everything hurts, my head feels foggy half the time from the pain medication. Every time I finally feel like I have a bit of energy, it gets sapped away from all the magic in me. I’m sick of it.”

Seyoon frowns at that, settling himself closer to Junhee so he could pull him into his arms.”We’ll figure it out. Donghun already told you everything, yeah?”

Junhee just nods a minuscule amount, wrapping his arms around Seyoon’s chest. 

“He also let me know about you wanting to stay inside for the next few days.” Junhee hums, nestling his face into the crook of Seyoon’s neck. “Apparently Hyuna told you something bad?”

“Ah...it really is too gruesome to talk about with you in this condition.” Seyoon murmurs, resting his head against Junhee’s. “I’d prefer not to talk about it.”

“Mm. Of course.” Junhee yawns out. “Then I can go back to sleep, right? I can trust you and Donghun to keep things together while I recover.”

Seyoon just nods, pressing a light kiss to the crown of Junhee’s head. “We’ve taken care of you and the others once, we can do it again.”

He can feel Junhee’s lips quirk. 

“Then I feel like I can take my time to recover.” Junhee murmurs sleepily, pressing a kiss to the others neck. 

“The sooner you get better, the sooner everything will go back to normal.”

Junhee just hums lightly, nestling close. No more words are shared between them, just the soft sound of Junhee settling down.

Seyoon goes to put out the candles a mere fifteen minutes later, fearing a blazing inferno if he were to leave them all burning while he slept. He pulls the blackout curtains shut tightly, tying the ribbon that would keep them together.

He crawls back into the bed as gently as possible, wrapping his arms around the other and finally allowing his busy mind to shut down. Blearily, he registers that he’s still in his clothes from the trial.

But he cannot find enough energy to care.

☽

They don’t hear from Hyuna for the next five days. 

It frays on everyone’s nerves just a bit. 

Especially Byeongkwan’s. Seyoon knows that the other is headed for some sort of tantrum. None of them like being locked indoors. Seyoon keeps trying to soothe them and say that it’s for the best.

Perhaps that old coven tried to do this, too. It’s perfectly plausible. Stay inside and avoid anything bad - avoid anything that could mess up being added to the registry of officialized covens. 

Yet it had cost them.

Maybe tempers flared in that group. He wonders which ones passed away first - the younglings or the ones affected by the magic?

He glances at Byeongkwan, glaring at his mug as if it just insulted him. He can feel the tension radiating off of him in waves.

Distantly, upstairs, he can hear Yoochan showering. He wonders if he’s in the same kind of mood.

Junhee’s room is silent. It was a rough day earlier. Donghun had been in the room, everyone having different days to spend time with him (aside from Yoochan, who still feels guilty and refuses to see him, much to Donghun’s distress). 

And Junhee had woken up at four in the afternoon, disturbing them all, wailing in pain.

Even pain medication for vampires can only do so much. Juho said dosing him with anything stronger could have some serious effects - to the point where he didn’t even want to elaborate on what those effects were. Just that it'd be very, very bad for Junhee.

Donghun had managed to lull a whimpering Junhee back to sleep. Seyoon had stood in the doorway, taking in the splotchy bruises that crept up along Junhee’s exposed arms and neck.

Seyoon stares down into his lap, twiddling his thumbs.

Things were going to be okay.

That’s all he had to keep telling himself.

☽

They get a call two days later, Hyuna’s apologies immediate as soon as she gets a chance to speak. A fuck up with the council, some pushy mages who felt like they were being unjustly targeted. It was all a mess that could’ve been avoided if one of her lackeys had worded her damn inquiry right.

They’re supposed to visit by the end of the night. That’s what she had said. 

It should be a wave of relief for him.

But now, three hours later, he’s facilitating a screaming match between Donghun and Byeongkwan. Byeongkwan wants to go outside. Seyoon can understand that. Donghun is the temporary leader until Junhee is able to get back up and running. So Donghun’s word is, technically, supposed to be followed.

So when Donghun said that no, Byeongkwan can’t go out, something snapped. Now Seyoon is stuck trying to get them to stop fucking yelling at each other. Well. Donghun has stopped yelling. He’s stopped responding in general.

But Byeongkwan has grown brutal with his snappy replies and yells. 

“It’s just until we can be certain -” Seyoon tries to chip in, holding his hands on Byeongkwan’s shoulders, kneading them lightly in attempt to get him to calm down.

“Certain of what?” Byeongkwan snaps, turning his aggression on him. “Certain that Junhee is dying? Because I don’t think we need to wait around much longer, then! Because he’s fucking dying! Y’all don’t wanna talk about it! But he is!”

“He is not!” Donghun retorts. “Don’t you even say something like that!”

“Oh now you want to talk, right? Well face the music, Donghun! He’s dying. All of us have to accept that we’ll get to bury our leader by the end of next month because he’s fucking wasting away right in front of us!” Byeongkwan yells, fury over powering the fear that Seyoon can feel. 

Donghun just closes his mouth, hands gripping the kitchen island so tight that Seyoon can hear the cracking of the marble.

God, that marble was expensive, too.

Yoochan has gone to hide upstairs. Amidst all the yelling down here, Seyoon has been unable to place him within the house. 

“Are these the same people that wished me goodnight?” A new voice asks, wavering and tired. 

Donghun’s head snaps up, zeroing in on the voice faster than Seyoon can.

Oh, Junhee.

He looks worse for wear, like he’s been thrown into the ring faster than he can heal and prepare for. Seyoon’s stomach clenches. Byeongkwan’s bristling frame immediately sags, face contorting into something akin to pain.

“You shouldn’t be up -” Donghun starts, voice raised. He pauses, taking a deep breath and trying again. “You should be in bed, Junhee.”

“And you should all be getting along.” Junhee bites back, steadying himself against the door frame. “Obviously, the day isn’t going exactly as planned.”

Donghun looks down, eyeing the marble counter top and making a little ‘oh’ sound at the fissures running around where his fingers were. 

“And you.” Junhee says tiredly, startling Byeongkwan into looking at him. “Going around talking about my death like you can see it happening. What’s up with that?”

Byeongkwan dips his head, deciding to become personally close with the floor.

“Because you are.” Byeongkwan scoffs, though the fight is gone from his voice. “You’re dying, Junhee. You shouldn’t be coming to scold us when -” He cuts himself off, a small waver in his voice. “- when you’re obviously avoiding the truth just as much as they are.”

“So, if I die, you break into a fight? Is that what’s going to happen?”

“No -”

“Then why is it happening now?” Junhee asks. “I gave Donghun the position of leader. I know the circumstances suck. I hear you complain about how you want to go outside. But can’t you tell that we’re scared? Scared of whoever did this doing it again to one of us?”

“I, yes, but -”

“And it’s not like you’re starving in here.” Junhee continues. “Not when we stocked the fridge for at least a week before Youngbin’s coven was kind enough to donate half of their own share.”

“Don’t wear yourself out, Junhee.” Seyoon slips in quietly, watching how Junhee wavers on his own two feet. 

Junhee just waves him off. “I can understand you getting stir crazy, Byeongkwan. Do you think I’m enjoying laying in bed all day? I miss having the energy to go out and run around.” He says, turning his attention back to Donghun. “And you - don’t you think you could’ve handled this better? Sure, I understand staying inside completely for the first few days. But the others can go out if they have someone to go with them, right?”

“You had Yoochan with you.” Donghun mumbles. “And you still got attacked.”

“But now we know that we have someone doing this.” Junhee reasons. “Don’t you think that Byeongkwan would be more wary of the people on the street?”

Donghun looks at Byeongkwan as if he were surveying him. His shoulders slump afterwards, gaze fixating on the cracks in the marble again. “I guess you’re right.”

Junhee lets out a soft hum. “We’re all on edge.” He soothes. “Don’t let it tear you all apart. Especially with me down. You guys have to be able to function just as normally as possible, right?” He asks, voice light. “Talk things out before you decide to try and out yell each other. Especially with Byeongkwan. We all know how loud he is.” Junhee chuckles, though weak. 

The humor is welcome though, Donghun and Byeongkwan sharing a mutual look and a weary giggle.

Their laughter doesn’t last as long as they wish it did. Because nearly moments later, Junhee sags against the doorframe. There’s a bolt of panic, all of them getting ready to move -

A pair of limbs winds their way around Junhee’s torso, maneuvering themselves quickly to drape Junhee’s arm around a pair of broad shoulders.

Oh, Yoochan. So that’s where he was. If anything, he might've went and cried to their leader about them all getting ready to fight.

Yoochan doesn’t make any eye contact with them. He doesn’t even look their way. Instead he presses Junhee against him, who’s complaining that he’s fine and that he’s just a little worn out. Yoochan doesn’t take the bait and starts helping him leave.

The three stand in silence. Seyoon can hear Yoochan trying to convince Junhee to let him carry him. The resistance to that idea is palpable in his mind. His ears are ringing from the sudden exhaustion that comes from Junhee’s connection.

The resistance is gone in a flash. Only one pair of footsteps can be heard making their way up the stairs. 

Donghun stares at where Junhee was once standing, turning his gaze to look at Seyoon and Byeongkwan.

“You can go outside, if you want. Just be back within a few hours.” Donghun says, tiredly. Then he’s gone, speed walking out of the kitchen. Seyoon can hear his footsteps hurrying up the staircase. 

Byeongkwan, meanwhile, sinks down to their tile floor. He doesn’t even sit down all the way before he’s crying. Ah. So all it took was an argument to finally break him.

Seyoon sighs, moving to sit down behind him, pulling him into a tight back hug.

“He heard me talk about him dying!” Byeongkwan whines, burying his face into his hands. “He heard me yelling about how he was dying and he stood there and listened!” He cried. “Junhee probably thinks I want him to die!”

“I highly doubt that.” Seyoon quips, running his hands through Byeongkwan’s hair soothingly. "I highly doubt that our boyfriend would think that you want him dead."

“But he accepted it so easily! He seemed okay with the idea of dying!” 

The older sighs.

“Because he knows better than to try and argue with you when your pissy. We all do.” He points out, resting his forehead on the back of Byeongkwan’s head. “Plus he’s putting on a brave face. He’s scared too. But he has to stay strong for us because he’s worried that we’ll all start fighting each other if he doesn’t. Just now was an example of that.”

If anything, Byeongkwan cries harder. Good job, Seyoon. Good job.

Thinking fast, he tucks his arms under Byeongkwan’s armpits and hauls him up, turning him around and pressing his head into his chest. He knows that his shirt is probably going to get splotchy red marks on it, yet he can’t find himself caring enough about it.

“Alright.” He soothes quietly, kissing the top of the shorter’s head. “Let it all out, okay? Then we’ll go out for a few hours while Hwitaek’s boys and Juho are over, yeah? Go out into town for awhile?” 

Byeongkwan just nodded, hiccuping cries echoing out into the otherwise silent kitchen. The younger bunches Seyoon’s shirt fabric between his fists. Seyoon, quite petty in his thoughts, is aware that this is a shirt that needs to be ironed in ordered to not wrinkle.

And here he was, letting it get wrinkled.

(If this were sixty years ago, he would’ve gotten in a fist fight with Byeongkwan. If this were sixty years ago, he would have flung the other out the nearest window.)

They stand there, silent. Byeongkwan’s cries turn to hiccups. Those hiccups turn to whimpers.

And soon, the younger is blinking up at him, moving to run his eyes on his sleeve. His cheeks are tracked with red stains, reminiscent of Yoochan from the court trial. It’s times like these that Seyoon really remembers how young Byeongkwan actually is. 

He takes a quiet breath, moving to tilt Byeongkwan’s head up towards him. “Feel better?”

“I guess..” The other mumbles, blinking and scrunching his face. His gaze tips down, taking a look at his shirt. “O-oh...I’ve stained your shirt..”

“That’s fine.” Seyoon hums. “I expected it to happen.”

“But -”

“It’s fine.” He repeats. “How about you go wash up your face while I go change my shirt, yeah? Then we’ll go out.”

Byeongkwan looks at him before nodding sheepishly, turning towards the kitchen sink. He still seems a bit down, shoulders slumped as he turns the water on.

Seyoon frowns, turning to leave the kitchen.

He heads up the stairs, staring down at the carpet as if it insulted him.

The door to Junhee’s room is cracked, so he takes a small detour to poke his head in. 

Junhee is curled up in the bed, Yoochan spooning him. Really, it looked more like Yoochan was guarding him. Donghun is off at the window, staring out of it and across the street. Probably looking at Youngbin’s house, waiting for Juho to come over.

“Me and Byeongkwan are heading out.” He murmurs quietly. Donghun doesn’t turn to look at him, just nods to confirm that he heard him. 

With that, he quietly makes his exit to go to his room.

When Junhee had first given him the option to design his own room, he had found it stupid. What’s the point in decorating a room that you were going to sleep in?

But now he’s got shelves upon shelves of books, a little laptop station sitting snug in the corner. His ceiling is a dark gray, lit up with some constellation that human’s have forgotten the name of. He doesn’t even remember it.

But he had seen it in a book, carefully painted on yellowing pages with an old fae language inscribed under it. Perhaps that’s its name. 

The lights themselves were installed by Donghun and Junhee one night while Seyoon was out stalking the town. Back when he was - bitter. 

He had come home to see them wiring up all the lights, even including a connection to an app on his phone so he could change the colors of the lights to whatever he wanted.

It was a beautiful room that he did not think he deserved. He still thinks that.

His closet is a hoard of carefully collected items from different fashion waves and countries. Anniversary trips to the Swiss Alps - the coats they had bought just to fit in with the human population. Vacations to white sandy beaches and the tacky outfits that were sold at tourist shops.

Yet somehow, he had managed to stay away from the brightly colored clothes. Sure, he had a few - but his closet consisted of monochromatic and neutral themes. He glances down at his shirt, frowning at the stains before reaching out to grab a shirt off the hanger. As a vampire, you get good at learning how to remove stains.

He discards the shirt into his hamper in the corner of his room, tugging a baggier gray shirt on. Seyoon finds himself counting down from one hundred before nodding and moving to leave his room.

Part of him wants to go back into Junhee’s room. Instead, he forces himself to walk back down the stairs.

Byeongkwan is waiting for him at the foot of the staircase, leaning against the bannister with his back to the older.

There is no other interaction other than him carefully glancing at Byeongkwan as he walks to the foyer. He knows, reasonably, that the other would likely follow. So he wordlessly slips on his shoes and retrieves the car keys from their little hook. It isn’t until he hears the sound of Byeongkwan struggling to put on a pair of shoes that he ultimately looks at the younger.

And then they head out to the car, the other's shoulders remaining scrunched and his head low. 

The silence ends as Seyoon pulls out of the driveway just mere moments later.

“Can we go to our restaurant?” Byeongkwan asks quietly, fiddling with the rings on his fingers. “I just want to see how our staff is doing.”

“Of course.” Seyoon says, perhaps a little too quickly. He’s just ready to agree to anything if it meant cheering the other up.

(His old self probably would’ve hated who he was now.)

As they drive down their neighborhood, he sees someone cross the street to their house in his rear view mirror. Ah, that must be Juho. Good. Perhaps him being there will make the visit less...worrying. Less stressful.

Hopefully they return to good news. 

He pulls up at the automatic gate, pulling his card out to swipe it and free themselves into the quieter neighborhood.

It’s nearing that pesky holiday that humans seem to enjoy. Or maybe it’s already happened. The one where they go out and beg for candy or for their wits to be scared out of them.

He’ll never understand holiday trends like that. But that time of the year always boosts the popularity of their little restaurant - which has stepped it up in previous years to produce tooth rotting sugary foods to perhaps sway people into forking over a little more cash for whatever gremlin of a child that they have with them.

(They also cater to those who can’t have sugar with a sprawling sugar free menu. Junhee wants to add a gluten free menu - but Seyoon refuses to get into that conversation. He doesn’t even remember what gluten is.)

The thought alone makes him wish that the biggest stressor in his life could go back to being the word ‘gluten’.

It’s easy to get to their restaurant in such a small town (compared to other places, anyway), it being located one block in front of what they could consider one of the five main tourist attractions here. A theme park. It’s a small amusement park - but the rides are world renowned. 

(You learn a lot about running a business when you live to be over eight hundred years old. Tell that to the owner, Jo Wonjun.)

The real irony of it all, Seyoon decides, is the feeding parlor right across the street. It’s one of the more ritzy ones - the one that Junhee likes to frequent when he decides that he deserves it. Which in all due respect, is pretty often. It’s designed much like a lavish diner - the few times that Seyoon had been in there recently, they had a chandelier and mood lighting.

He remembers when that place was barely starting up. It had three staff members and accepted open donations - and even then it almost went out of business. Now he could drink O negative out of a champagne glass. 

Then Wonjun’s amusement park came into a booming popularity. Then the shopping mall just a few minutes away - boasting some weird little vampire and voodoo novelty shops that brought in all the weird folk. And the museum and the big scary maze and all the countless other -

“Do you think they’re struggling without us?” Byeongkwan interrupts his thoughts as he turns to pull into the back lot of their restaurant. “Our staff, I mean.”

“They struggle even with us here. The only capable ones are Yoobin and Changyoon. Even then that’s because Yoobin wants to prove that she deserves to become shift manager and Changyoon is only trying to earn money for his fashion start up.” Seyoon says as he parks the car, turning off the ignition.

“Well - fair. At least they know how to run the place, at least.” Byeongkwan says, picking at the hem of his shirt.

Seyoon stared at him, sighing and nodding. “We can be thankful for that, yes.”

Byeongkwan just nodded, smile quirking his lips. Just like that, any worry started to melt from Seyoon’s mind.

“Let’s go in, then.” Byeongkwan says breezily, moving to get out of the car and leave Seyoon behind.

Seyoon just lets out an indignant noise, scrambling out of the car to follow after him. He presses the clicker without looking at the car, listening to the beep to signify that it’s locked. 

Their restaurant is a second home, really. He’s forgotten how much he’s missed it since they took time off because of Junhee. It could hardly be marketed as a glamorous place - there’s still several things that they want to fix up. Such as gutting the attic (for this was once an odds and ends shop before they bought it out) to make some V.I.P booths. Or renovating the kitchen for the fourth or fifth time. 

But they could hardly consider it a hole in the wall joint either. It saw dozens of families and couples coming to and from the amusement park. It hosted birthday parties (and turning anniversaries!). There were even the rare coven registry parties, like the one they all threw for Seonghwan’s coven just three years ago.

Of course, any vampire related activities had to get specific catering - but what was important is that they hosted them. They were known for that.

Even now, as they step into the kitchen through the password protected door, he can hear the chattering of people. 

“Seyoon! Byeongkwan!” A voice calls out over the hiss of something being flipped in a pan. “We thought you’d be taking more time off!” It’s Yoobin, he discovers. She waltzes over in her pressed black shirt and maroon skirt, smile wide. 

“Yoobin.” Seyoon greets, smiling. “We’re just visiting. Things got a little stir crazy in our home.” He says, motioning over to Byeongkwan. “He insisted that we’d check to make sure that the place hadn’t burnt down.”

Yoobin gasps, pursing her lips together. “Kim Byeongkwan! There is no way I’d allow your establishment to burn while you were away!” 

Byeongkwan just chuckles, waving his hands frantically. “I’m aware, Yoobin! I’m aware! It’s the the kids like Taichi and Heejin that I worry about!”

Yoobin pouts, looking offended. In a way, he supposes she has every right too. She came in to their staff a little over twenty years ago - back when they had desperately needed a server on their tiny list of staff. Now she was floor manager, making sure everything went smoothly. Of course, she wanted to be shift manager - partially to yell at the kitchen staff, probably. 

“You can hardly call them kids when you’re so young yourself!” She sniffs, crossing her arms and returning her gaze to Seyoon. “Anyways. Business is going great. Customers seem to love those champagne seared scallops. Guess your risky venture paid off.”

“Donghun’s risky venture. He’s the one that wanted to strike up business with the fishery at the mall.” Seyoon corrects. 

Yoobin just tsks him before her face softens a bit.

“How is Junhee?” She asks, concern lacing her features. “Any updates?”

“Nothing...nothing major.” Seyoon admits, frowning a bit. “We’re having some of Hwitaek’s coven visit today. One of them is a doctor, apparently.”

“Ah…” She says as she looks down. Perhaps she expected something cheerier. “Well! Hwitaek’s known to have some very scholarly people in his coven! They’ll figure something out!”

Seyoon just forces a smile.

“Oh!” Yoobin continues, perking up slightly. “Someone did drop by to send her well wishes to Yoochan and Junhee!”

“Oh? Who?”

“No clue. Youjin is the one that talked to her since he was manning the welcome booth.” She says, shrugging. “But I figured that you would take solace in knowing that.”

Seyoon just nods again, interest piqued. “Perhaps I’ll pay a visit to him, he’s working right now, yes?”

“Just took his break actually -” Yoobin starts, pausing and making a little ‘oh’ noise. “- oh dear! I came in here to let Taichi know that it was his turn at the booth! I have to go do that!” Yoobin says, bowing to both of them and leaving without giving them a chance to reply.

“Still high strung as she was when I last saw her.” Byeongkwan says, glancing at Seyoon. “So…Youjin?”

“Mhm.” Seyoon says, ushering him along past the cooks to reach the break room. The two received choruses of hellos from the cooks, to which Seyoon repeatedly nodded politely as a returned greeting.

Byeongkwan shoves the push door open, the sound of cooking becoming muffled as they walk in and close the door behind them. 

The break room has limited lighting - fluorescent lights are true hell on earth to their poor eyes - but the quirk of being a vampire is being able to take in a light source and triple the yield. 

So that is precisely why Youjin is reading on one of the break couches. A human would see nothing more than a partially illuminated silhouette. 

“Youjin.” Seyoon greets, startling the other man. “No worries, we’re just here to talk because Yoobin mentioned something.”

“Oh. I was worried that I’d have to go out and fix another Taichi screw up.” Youjin says, sitting up a little straighter. “I’ll assume that Yoobin already asked about Junhee.”

“Yes.”

“Would it be annoying if I asked about him too?”

Seyoon wants to say yes. Wants to say that yes, it is fucking annoying that he has to give the same status update over their coven leader - over their fucking boyfriend. But instead of lashing out, he smiles.

“Of course it’s not annoying. I appreciate the concern everyone has. He’s getting checked out by some doctors today.” He says, fighting to keep his voice level. He feels Byeongkwan slip his hand into his open. Seyoon finds himself squeezing it like it’s a lifeline.

“Mm. Are the doctors specialized in magic? Since I heard his and Yoochan’s injuries had something to do with a spell.”

“Ah, what?” Seyoon pauses. “How did you know?” 

He knew the court case was known of. The information, however, was not. It was forbidden to talk about the grittier details of a court case unless you were in the session or had gotten explicit permission from the people who called for the court session.

And to his knowledge, Youjin’s coven was not in attendance. None of them had been in contact with Seyoon or any of the others either.

“This girl came in the other day and told me to pass along a get well message. Worded it like “I know magic can be a bit nasty to dispel, so I hope he heals just fine.” or something of the sort.” Youjin shrugs. “Seemed kinda worked up about it.”

“Did you know her?”

“Didn’t recognize her, no. Not a vampire, either. If she was, she had some kind of glamour on - but you know how hard it is to get those approved these days.” Youjin says, thinking. “She was slender - almost sickly looking? Tanned. She had an apron folded over her arm, but I didn’t quite think to search for a name tag. Uh...short bobbed hair with blonde highlights? Ring any bells?”

“No...none immediately, anyway.” Seyoon murmurs. “Maybe she’s a friend of Junhee’s. Any idea where she worked?”

“Nah. It was a blue and purple plaid apron, though. Kind of an eyesore.”

“Hm.” He tries to think of any store that had that apron in the area - but he couldn’t think of one. “I’ll ask Junhee when I go home.”

Youjin nods, smiling reassuringly. “I’m sure you’ll go home to good news.”

“I hope we do.” Byeongkwan cuts in, smiling in return before excusing them. Maybe Byeongkwan suddenly wants to leave - or maybe he can sense that Seyoon is just a few short words away from throwing one of the plastic tables across the room. Probably a mix of both, mainly the latter.

To his credit, he does keep his chill until he’s in the car. Then, and only then, does he rage. He beats his fists against the steering wheel, all the rage of the last few weeks slipping out of him.

He’s sick of being overly optimistic - sick of having to tell everyone that yes, their coven leader is a bit fucked up right now. It’s humiliating. As if half of the people that ask don’t already judge them enough!

And then the anger turns to sadness and he rests his arms across the steering wheel and breaks down into hitching sobs. Because Byeongkwan is right - Junhee is dying. 

Because Yoochan still blames himself. Because someone they might not even know apparently knows about the mage attack. Because maybe, if he’d been there that night, it would’ve gone differently. 

And worst of all, he feels like shit because there aren’t even any tears flowing. He feels like he should have a waterfall of tears down his face. Yet there’s nothing.

And he’s scared that the others will call him out. Call him fake - break up with him because obviously he doesn’t seem as torn up as the others are.

There’s a gentle press to his shoulder, a reaffirming touch that digs into his skin and pulls him out of his misery just enough to glance at the passenger side.

Byeongkwan is there - in his flurry of emotions he had forgotten about the younger - staring at him wide eyed and nervous. He can feel the tension radiating off of the other, feels the fear tug from the connection in his mind.

In a split second he’s probing his own mind, feeling for the connections of the others. From Donghun’s there’s gentle worry. Yoochan is seemingly trying to push happy vibes to him, though they feel strained.

And Junhee is there, flickering and weaker in terms of connection. But the comforting feeling stays there, a soft caress in his mind.

The one problem of being connected to your loved ones is the fact that you can’t have a secret breakdown.

“Sey..?” Byeongkwan asks quietly, squeezing his shoulder again. “You’re scaring me.”

Seyoon feels awful.

For most of the time that Byeongkwan and Yoochan have been around, he’s kept his temper in check. Donghun and Junhee were aware of his temperament and were with him when he wasn’t good at controlling it or communicating about what was bothering him.

But with the other two, they had only seen him fly off the handle a few times. And those were years ago.

So now he feels a little embarrassed because, well, he’s supposed to be the chill one of their little unit.

“Sorry.” He says after a moment. “Sorry.” He repeats, moving to rub his hands down his face. “It’s just - there’s just a lot I have to take in. It’s been a rough few weeks.”

Byeongkwan grimaces, nodding quietly.

“It’s exhausting having to tell everyone the same thing over and over again. There’s no happy updates like everyone hopes for. If anything it’s just getting worse.” Seyoon sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Didn’t humans have a saying for that? Something like ‘it gets worse before it gets better’?” Byeongkwan asks, slowly pulling his hand away. He looks as if he’s cornered a wild animal. Seyoon doesn’t blame him.

“That shouldn’t apply here. We shouldn’t have to worry about Junhee dying before we can figure out how we can fucking fix this.” He says, tone rough as he tries to calm himself. “And now he’s getting checked out by doctors but they can’t even heal him until we catch whoever fucking did this - how are we supposed to do that when we don’t know who they are?” 

“Well..maybe they’ll be a registered mage?”

He thinks back to Hyuna talking discussing the murdered coven. That mage hadn’t been registered. 

“I don’t know.” Seyoon says after a minute. “I don’t know.”

Byeongkwan purses his lips together, crossing his arms and leaning back into his seat. “Well - if they’re not, we do have at least one lead to go off of.” He says carefully, glancing over at Seyoon.

“We do?”

“Mhm.” The other says, tilting his head back against the headrest. When he finally catches on that Seyoon has no clue what he means, he lets out a quizzical noise. “The girl that talked to Youjin?”

“What about her?” Seyoon swears he’s trying to follow along, but Byeongkwan is looking at him like he should already know this. And he doesn’t.

“Well. For one she isn’t a vampire, so chances of her being at the court during our trial is not likely. Two, I haven’t seen any girl come to our house lately - you’d assume she’d come to ask for permission to talk about the finer details of the case, right? Since we’ve been home this whole time, we’d see someone who was visiting.” He reasons, shrugging his shoulders like it was obvious.

“Just because they need to ask for permission to talk about a trial doesn’t mean they will.” Seyoon replies, scrunching his face up. “And maybe she called one of the others instead of visiting in person.”

“We would’ve heard the conversation if she called, though.” Byeongkwan says, puzzled. “Maybe a text message, then?”

To that, Seyoon just shrugs and runs his hand through his hair.

“We can ask if they know her or if they’ve been contacted about getting permission.” Byeongkwan states. “If not, then we have someone to look for. Bobbed hair with blonde highlights, almost sickeningly skinny but tan. Which...could be a lot of people. The blue and purple plaid apron might help, though.”

“If we find her, maybe she’ll have information we need.” Seyoon says. Now he understands. Why didn’t he think of that sooner? He’ll just blame it on his mini temper tantrum. Yeah. He was too focused on that so he couldn’t think clearly.

“Now you got it!” Byeongkwan beams, happy to see Seyoon catching up. “So let’s do a few laps of the town to give them some time with Juho and whoever went over. Then when we get home, we’ll ask. If they don’t know anyone by that description, we have a girl to find.”

Alright. Alright yeah that sounded like a good plan to him. Even if it ended up being a bust - at least he wouldn’t be tucked away in the house watching Junhee waste away. Or watching Yoochan’s burn grow increasingly wider. 

“Let me drive, though.” Byeongkwan adds after a moment of silence. “I don’t want you behind the wheel - no offense.”

“I..okay. That’s fair.” Seyoon assents, “You can drive.”

Byeongkwan just smiles thankfully as he gets out of the passenger seat door. Seyoon takes a takes a moment to center himself before nodding his head and getting out of the driver’s seat.

With that, they switch places. Minutes later, Byeongkwan is peeling out of the parking lot, Seyoon belatedly remembering that Byeongkwan’s license is expired. Whoops. But when Byeongkwan flips on the radio to their favorite station, he can’t find it in himself to really care. 

So for the next hour and a half, he takes in the night life of the town while Byeongkwan goes down every neighborhood and central street. The double peaked mountain looms over the town out in the distance. He’s pretty sure that some human has taken a picture of it and has made it into a copyrighted computer background. It certainly sets up a specific aesthetic. 

He tells Byeongkwan exactly that. Byeongkwan wonders where his mind has gone to. Hmph. Kids these days can’t appreciate art the same way. 

The younger vampire is able to keep the mood up for the whole duration of their ride. When the clock on the dash finally rolls over to two in the morning, they head back home. Even then, his mood remains light. He’s sure that the other’s appreciate it mentally.

They’re pulling into the driveway at the same time that two people are entering a flashy white car in front of the house. The two seem nice enough to halt their actions, waiting for them to park. 

Seyoon grimaces. Time to be formal again. Byeongkwan just pats his thigh and turns off the engine before getting out of the car. Seyoon sighs and follows suit.

It’s only polite to greet the coven members of Hyuna’s right hand man. 

Seyoon seems to have gotten lucky after the break down in his car. The introductions go quickly - they’re Hongseok and Shinwon, respectively. Hongseok is the one that works in the morgue. Shinwon is the real doctor of the coven. Blah blah blah.

Shinwon mentions that he’s shocked to see Junhee still alive and that Yoochan’s body is fighting off letting the magic spread. Apparently, it’s a rare occurence to be exposed to live magic that long and still - in the best terms possible - be alive.

Hongseok mentions that the samples they took do match a ‘special case’ that they’ve been working on for awhile. Seyoon knows what case they’re discussing. He has a sneaking suspicion that he’s not really supposed to talk about it, though.

The conversations end pleasantly fast, the two insisting that they had places to be. Seyoon didn’t particularly care. Still, he’s polite enough to wait for them to successfully leave the cul-de-sac, sending Byeongkwan into the house because the other was getting antsy to get inside.

Once the car is out of sight, he finds himself taking an involuntary sigh of relief, turning on his heels and going into their house. 

He doesn’t expect everyone to be lounging around in the living room when he comes in from taking his shoes off in the foyer. Well. Almost everyone. He pushes that thought away when he sees Donghun and Byeongkwan hugging each other in some sort of death grip fashion. Ah, well, it’s good that they’re making up.

Yoochan casts a glance from one of their plush recliners, up in an instant and pressing against Seyoon even quicker. He presses a few quick kisses to Seyoon’s cheeks before yanking him into a hug. Seyoon doesn’t really need to ask why Yoochan has decided to give him this sudden onslaught of affection - he’s pretty sure that the episode in the car is what’s causing this.

He appreciates it, though. They haven’t done anything relatively domestically romantic and disgusting since Yoochan and Junhee got hurt.

“Byeongkwan’s hogging Donghun. So I’m hogging you.” Yoochan jokes idly, moving to press another kiss to Seyoon’s jaw.

“I’m not hogging him!” Byeongkwan complains. “I’m apologizing for being an asshole!”

“By hogging him!”

Seyoon and Donghun share a glance and let out a shared laugh. 

That’s how they end up in a technical cuddle pile on one of the L-shaped couches a moment later. Donghun sacrifices himself to be at the bottom of the pile, considerably the sturdiest built. Seyoon and Byeongkwan may be muscular - but they’re nearly all sharp angles. Donghun is considerably softer to lay on. They’re all twisted in some fashion, Byeongkwan’s leg is draped over Seyoon’s waist. Seyoon is pressed up against the back of the couch, technically on Yoochan’s lap. Yet Byeongkwan somehow has one of his legs pinned under Yoochan’s. Donghun’s right arm is pinned between Seyoon’s back and the couch while his left arm is just barely wrapped around Byeongkwan’s shoulder. Somehow, Seyoon has managed to wrap his arms around Byeongkwan’s torso.

Man, contortionists would be impressed at whatever the fuck they could call the position they’re in. Not just impressed. Jealous. 

“Juho went home shortly before Hongseok and Shinwon left.” Donghun says, shortly after everyone gets comfortable. Though that term could be used rather vaguely. “Said he had to go to work soon.”

Seyoon just nods, absorbing the information. “Junhee’s asleep, I take it?”

“Yeah. I made sure he had some blood to drink before he went to sleep. He’s been a bit of a fussy eater ever since he’s gotten sick.” Donghun admits. Seyoon can feel him shift a bit under him. “But he and Yoochan were on board with getting some samples taken.”

“Yeah, I heard from Hongseok.” 

“Oh, so you did meet him. Nice guy. Bit odd.” Donghun chuckles. “But it was a match for the other sample they had on record. Sadly they have no name to the sample though.”

“Mm!” Byeongkwan says at that. “Speaking of names! Or, well, people! Do you by any chance know a skinny tan girl with bobbed hair that has blonde highlights? She works at a place that has a purple and blue plaid apron? Human?”

Donghun mulls over it for a moment, Seyoon can practically hear his thoughts.

“Not that I recall. Why?” He finally says, shaking his head.

“A girl matching that description talked to Youjin and asked to send him to send her well wishes onto us. But she also mentioned how nasty magic infested wounds would be. Which is not something I think was public knowledge, right?” Byeongkwan asks, waiting for Donghun to nod in confirmation. “So she obviously knows one of us or -”

“Knows something about it?” Yoochan asks, perking up suddenly. “It might be a bit farfetched, but could she know something about it?”

“I’m feeling lucky about this.” Byeongkwan says. “I feel like we do have a lead. So I’m assuming that you don’t know her either, Chan?”

“Nope.” Yoochan confirms, thinking. “Maybe Junhee?”

“Junhee hardly converses with humans these days…” Seyoon trails off. “At least, not on his own free time.” 

“I could ask him when he wakes up tomorrow?” Yoochan asks, posing it as a question more than a statement.”If we can rule him out then…we try to find the girl?”

“We try to find the girl.” Seyoon and Byeongkwan reply in unison. 

“Not a lot to go off of, though..” Donghun mumbles, sounding worried. “What if we don’t find her?”

“Didn’t you hear what I said, Hun? I’m feeling lucky about this!” Byeongkwan reiterates. “And if we find her and she doesn’t lead us to anything, then we keep looking!”

“But what about Chan and Junhee? They’ll have to deal with the magic -” Donghun tries to argue.

“- and if we have to deal with it, we will.” Yoochan replies. “Junhee’s strong. Shinwon said that he’s lasted two weeks longer than he would’ve expected a younger vampire to last when faced with magic like this. And he said mine is more contained because it doesn’t have energy to feed off of like Junhee’s does.”

They can all feel Donghun’s worry. But he’s also pretty sure that they can all feel Byeongkwan and Yoochan’s hopefulness. That is enough to soothe Donghun, even if it’s just a bit. It’s enough to soothe them all, really.

Which is the first time that’s happened in a long time. 

“They said keeping Junhee bedridden and immobile as possible is the best thing we can do for him. Walking around seems to apparently be circulating the spell through his system.” Donghun supplies. “So someone will have to kinda just...be there for him. Nothing is really changing, but if we’re going to have to look for a girl…”

“I’ve already got a plan for that!” Byeongkwan says, perhaps a bit too cheerly.

And thus their conversation dissolves into a very dedicated conversation about how they’d hunt down the girl. Yoochan says that he doesn’t remember what the person who attacked them looked like - but he could confirm that they didn’t have bobbed hair. They couldn’t rule out a hair cut, though.

Somehow, it turns into them getting assigned roles. Seyoon is supposed to hunt down all the businesses and catalogue the aprons they wear - if they wear any at all. Donghun is going to go to all the hair salons and give a general description of the girl to see if a haircut actually happened. Yoochan plans to visit their restaurant and check security tapes to see if they got a good angle on her. Maybe it’s someone from the small population of humans that have made their sleepy town their permanent home. 

And Byeongkwan is staying at home to keep a watch on Junhee.

“I thought you would’ve been the one itching to go out and look the most.” Seyoon says quizzically. “You seemed to be going the most stir crazy out of us all.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m still going to go out searching. Mostly to just stretch my legs. But I won’t stay out for longer than...hm. Two hours?” Byeongkwan asks, tilting his head back against Donghun’s chest. “I don’t want Junhee to be alone.”

He can’t help but smile fondly at Byeongkwan. Going from throwing a tantrum earlier in the day to being willing to coop himself inside after a few hours just to watch over the other. It’s a small blessing.

They stay like that for the rest of the night, aside from Byeongkwan who leaves once to get a blood bag. He returns shortly after, though, somehow making their convoluted cuddle pile even worse. In the end, they fall asleep there as the clocks on their phones alert them that it’s approaching dawn. It’s not surprising that they’ve stayed up just talking and occasionally goofing off. Really, it’s something they all needed.

Next time, Junhee will be able to join them.

For the first time in awhile, Seyoon sleeps peacefully.

(Junhee confirms that he doesn’t know anyone by that description the next night. Instead of feeling upset, Seyoon feels some sort of morbid excitement. He hasn’t had to hunt anyone down in decades. He wonders if the others feel the same.)

☽

The concept of a hunt is thrilling. Actually doing it is something else. Especially if you don’t know who you’re hunting down. 

It’s been just over a week and a half. Seyoon couldn’t stalk the mall properly for the first half of this little hunt because the restaurant finally called and begged for one of them to come back. By the time he had gotten out of work on those nights, most of the shops were closed. 

(One benefit of living in a mainly vampiric town is the late night hours. But even they can only be open for so long.)

Hunting through the other stores around produced nothing either. Most of the aprons were blues or blacks - or any solid color. Nothing plaid. He also checked Wonjunn’s amusement park, but none of them wore aprons in those stores. 

At least he isn’t the only one struggling. Donghun had visited every salon in the town and had left empty handed. 

Yoochan was able to get some video footage at least, but it was far too blurry to even begin trying to identify who it was.

So now Seyoon was out alone, Byeongkwan dropping him off at the mall to hunt through stores while Byeongkwan went home to tend to Junhee. 

So that’s how Seyoon ends up stalking through the downtown mall. It really isn’t his favorite place to be without some sort of face mask on. The scents of the human food court, the ‘fast food’ blood bank and the several perfume and soap stores combining together is absolutely atrocious. It’s the holy trinity of scents that should never be together.

His few hours of popping in and out of stores prove fruitless. Save for the stop at the fast food version of a blood bank. It’s not great blood. If anything the stuff in their fridge back home is better.

(They’ve long since ditched actually feeding from people. The temptation is always there, but none of them have been able to do it. That just makes them seem more weird because of how willing they are to go to blood banks compared to, well, just going to the main source. They prefer the middle man. As long as it’s a trusted middle man.)

So he ultimately walks home, considerably put out. On the way home, he finds himself sending out a quiet prayer that some stroke of luck saves him. It's become a competition, now. A race against time because Junhee is getting worse. He hasn't had the heart to go see him within the last four days. From what Byeongkwan said - it isn't pretty.

He's barely eating now, apparently.

In order to win this race, he needs a stroke of luck. 

And somehow, he gets it.

☽

He's swinging his keys around his finger as he walks up the sidewalk to their house. Juho is coming out on the opposite side of the street, dressed in his work outfit -

Wait. 

Seyoon squints at him, long and hard. Blue and purple plaid apron. Blue and purple plaid apron!

Suddenly he's walking across the street before he can even process it. His legs are just carrying him across the pavement until he's on the other's driveway. 

"Oh - Seyoon!" Juho says, voice lilting in confusion. "It's not often that you come over here. Is something wrong with Junhee?" He asks, head tilting to the side as he surveys Seyoon's face. "Do you want me to call in sick and -"

"No!" Seyoon replies, perhaps all too quickly. "Actually, your work might be able to help. We have -" He pauses, glancing around. "We have a lead on someone who might know how to fix Junhee. She wears the same kind of apron as you so.." He chuckles weakly. "I probably sound insane."

"Not at all. Chan told me about what you were all doing a few days ago when I was last over at your house." Juho says. "You think it's someone from the pharmacy?"

Seyoon just nods again, feeling his earrings gently hit the sides of his neck. 

"Well. Hm. You can describe them to me and I can say if they're there or not?" Juho asks quizzically, moving to unlock his car. "But can we, uh, do it while I drive? If you don't need me to take the day off I do have to be there on time..." Juho trails off, scrunching his face slightly.

"Sure - yeah, that'd be great! Can I just go grab Chan really quick? If it's the same person...then we might be catching who did this to them." He says, pointing back towards their house across the street. Juho glances at him and then at the house, letting out a small nod. 

Seyoon books it. It barely feels like his feet are touching the ground as he zooms off to their house, moving to barge through the door. Byeongkwan startles on the couch, more confused than panicked. Though once Seyoon asks for Yoochan, he just points upstairs. So Seyoon hightails it up the stairs, calling for Yoochan. In the back of his mind he knows he probably looks like he's lost his damn mind. Probably looks even crazier when he drags Yoochan back down the stairs and outside without explaining. It's a wonder in itself that the others didn't try to stop him to get an explanation out of him. They just let him go.

Likely for the best.

Juho was actually patient enough to wait for them, obviously taking some form of amusement out of seeing Seyoon this excited over something. It ends up being Juho that explains the whole situation to Yoochan, who in turn gets just as giddy as Seyoon does.

So they load up into Juho's car as quickly as possible.

Seyoon has never been to the pharmacy - usually Juho is kind enough to just bring them the prescriptions as long as he gets a valid doctors note. Usually he's the doctor. So really, there was never any need for them to go there. He would've never even think of the pharmacy, if he's honest. So maybe some higher power capable of doling out luck decided to bless him today. Or maybe life had just decided that they had enough stress for once. 

Either way, he's perhaps a bit too animated with his description of the girl. The rehash of her description is easy this time around - he's had to repeat it to so many shops within the last week that he's got it memorized. 

Juho listens to him ramble, mouth in a permanent amused smirk as he drove towards the center of town.

"She does sound familiar." He says after awhile, while they're stopped at a red light. "I think...Go-eun? She's the one that stocks all the medication the pharmacy gets. She works the night shift because she's attempting to absorb herself into the night life, or something." Juho shrugs, continuing to drive once the light flickers green. 

"So she isn't a vampire?" Yoochan asks from the back seat, leaning forward to join the conversation.

"No. A mage." He says, hurrying to finish once he notices Seyoon and Yoochan perking up at the information. "A registered mage. From what I understand, the one that hurt you and Junhee wasn't registered." Juho clarifies as he looks into the review mirror at Yoochan. Yoochan just slumps back against his seat, hand moving to prod at his injured side. "But if she knows anything..she should be here today." He reassures.

The rest of the drive is filled with jittery nerves. It's not the person they're after because she's a registered mage. But...she has to know something. Or maybe they got too excited at the thought of a lead. Maybe this was them getting worked up over nothing. 

No, this has to be something.

Yoochan startles both of them by launching himself out of the car once they pull up to the pharmacy, a tiny little shop next to a small block of apartments. Seyoon looks at Juho and shrugs, moving to climb out after the car is in park. 

"She'll be at the medications desk, probably." Juho advises as Seyoon climbs out. "Just...don't make a mess in there, okay?"

Seyoon just nods and slams the door, briskly walking after Yoochan's fleeting back. 

The fluorescent lights are a bit too bright for his liking - but he assumes that they have to keep things bright for the few non-vampiric staff. Like Go-eun. He's managed to wrangle Yoochan and keep him buy his side, walking down the white tiled aisles towards the back of the building. 

And just like that, he sees her. Perhaps that's something that a person would say in a movie when they first see someone they love. Not in this case. In this case, he sees someone who will hopefully be able to help them.

He silently shoos Yoochan over to a different aisle after he confirms, quietly, that this was not the person that attacked them. Seyoon already figured that. He takes a moment to straighten himself up, combing through his hair and making himself look at least decently acceptable for the oncoming interrogation. No, not interrogation. Interrogating usually involves hitting someone. He will not his anyone today. Yeah.

Go-eun tilts her head up to look at him, hair pinned back and away from her eyes. "Can I help you?"

Seyoon didn't think of what to say. Shit. 

"Uh. Perhaps?"

"Do you have a prescription that needs to be filled?" She asks politely, leaning forward on the counter. 

"No." Seyoon pauses, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "Actually, I was wondering if you went into a local restaurant recently and sent well wishes to a vampire named Park Junhee?"

"Oh.." She pauses, trailing off "I did, yes. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just that the vampire in question is my boyfriend and the leader of my coven." He starts calmly. "The details of it being magic related hasn't circled around outside our immediate friends and the court itself. So I was just wondering where you heard it from, is all."

Go-eun pauses, looking at Seyoon carefully before sighing, expression falling. "I didn't hear it from any vampires. I'm pretty sure I know who did it and..I just wanted to express my well wishes. I would've visited personally, but I had no way to enter your neighborhood. So when I learned that you had a restaurant..."

"You know who did it?" Seyoon doesn't believe that it can be that easy. "You know who, who's done this? And you didn't file any report?"

"I.."

"You let two people I know and love sit and suffer with wounds caused by magic while you knew all along?"

"It's not that simple!" Go-eun exclaims. "She's my student. She went a little wayward morally but I never believed that she could've done something like this! I never taught her any sort of spell that could've done something like...like this."

Seyoon stares at her, long and hard. He tries, desperately, to try and hate her. Instead all he sees is a woman who lost control of her student. 

"Do you know if she's been in contact with any covens lately?"

"One. They're from a few towns over. They wanted to come live here or something and she offered to show them around one day. After that she kind of just started skipping our lessons and soon enough she was moving in with them. I hardly see her now." Go-eun says, looking down. "But don't think I've been doing nothing. As soon as I heard..as soon as I figured everything out, I started digging around. I think I'm onto something."

"Like a reversal spell?" Seyoon asks hopefully, perking up at the thought. 

"Yes." She looks nervous, face pinched. "I'm not sure how effective it'll be. But I've trained her long enough to do spells how she does them. If anything...I could probably reverse it. Or try to. I just need another day or so to study it." 

Seyoon feels ready to burst. This time it isn't out of rage. This time it's out of joy. 

"Okay. Okay yeah we can..." He trails off, excitement bubbling in him. "We can have someone pick you up a few days from now? To come to our house and try?" He asks, giddy.

She just nods, face looking less worried. "Of course. Anything I could do to..to correct this."

Seyoon doesn't feel the tears until he's sinking onto the floor and letting out happy sobs. It surely draws attention from the few people that are within the store - customers and staff a like. He's pretty sure that Juho will tease him over it later if he happened to see it. But right now he doesn't care. There's a possible solution to everything. 

For once, he's inclined to believe in luck. Or fate. Or chance. Or everything in between.

He doesn't necessarily remember him spewing out a litany of thank you's. He doesn't remember Yoochan dragging him out of the pharmacy and calling Byeongkwan to come pick them up. 

The one thing he does remember is the ultimate feeling of relief and the tears that all of them shed in the living room. That wasn't the first time they've done that, but man it's been awhile.

☽

"It is with great happiness that we can welcome back Park Junhee." Hyuna announces as the court claps. Seyoon's pretty sure half of them don't even care. But what he does know is that Rowoon is wrestling Dawon back into his seat in the back seats of the court. So at least one coven is sincere in the applause.

Junhee just ducks his head at the lectern, a small smile playing on his lips. 

"With the help of one Jung Go-eun, we have been successful in bringing in her student to trial." Hyuna continues. "Along with her student, a small coven who had recruited her pupil in attempt to cause fear within the community, with little avail."

Seyoon can see the coven sitting on an opposing bench. A second lectern had been added to the room, the coven leader and Go-eun's pupil in question standing there. It pisses him off a little, to see them so close to Junhee. 

"Judgement is swift in this court, as I'm sure you realize." She speaks out. "This is a rather open and shut case, if I'm honest with you all. If it were olden times, I'd simply allow Junhee's coven to enact their own sense of punishment against you both. But since we are modernizing our lives, you are here."

The other coven leader just nods stiffly, looking more ashamed that he got caught than anything. They had already heard his plea. He didn't think he'd get caught. He was doing all this to flex the power of having a new, submissive mage. If anything, she'd be getting a lesser punishment.

But it was also confirmed that she ultimately led to the injury and death of that other coven a few months back.

That could've been them, too. 

He looks at Junhee. He's still a little gaunt looking - it's only been three days since Go-eun came around to their house. He's got a bit of a way to go recovery wise, but he insisted that he would stand at the lectern, today. Junhee was lucky enough to leave relatively unscathed, aside from the obvious thinning and lack of energy. Yoochan is fine, too. His wound hardly bothered him while he had it - if it had been internal, he probably wouldn't have survived. 

Yet there he is, sitting right next to Byeongkwan. 

"In the case of your coven, Jaejin, you are effectively being removed from the registry. Furthermore, half of any profits you make are to immediately be written off to Junhee's coven for the next two years. Another quarter of it is to go to the Maker of the deceased coven's leader. They have not wished to show themselves in court since they are still not registered themselves, so they were willing to take a smaller cut." Hyuna drones on, not looking up from the paper in her hands. "You are to also serve a consecutive eight years working within the morgue with Hongseok -" She pauses, gesturing to the other on her left "- as well as separating yourself from your coven as they had no idea that you were doing this. As soon as you leave this court, you will have forty eight hours to say your goodbyes before cutting any and all mental connections with them."

Seyoon winces at that. It's not jail time. He had hoped for jail time. But cutting a mental connection manually? That's hell. Serves him right.

"As for our young, impressionable mage. You are to go report to the mage council after this and have your magic blocked. This effectively makes you human, no magic properties left within your body. This has proven that you are not capable of holding yourself responsible on judging what is wrong or right, morally. I have made contact with a human court that will take up murder and attempted murder charges. You can expect a fair time in jail." Hyuna says simply, folding the paper in her hands.

Go-eun's student looks near tears. Such a shame. 

"Now Junhee." Hyuna starts, voice light. "Are you satisfied with these punishments? Are there any you wish to remove or add?" She asks.

"No, ma'am." Junhee says, back straightening. "Ever punishment handed out is one that I see fit or fair. It is a shame that he is losing all connections with his coven. Her losing her magic is no light punishment either. But they are equally fitting for the mental stress my coven has gone through."

Hyuna nods, standing up and smoothing down her dress.

"With that, our court case ends. Jaejin, Hwitaek and Hyojong will escort you out. And you -" She pauses, glancing at the mage cowering next to Jaejin. "- I will personally lead you to the committee that will be responsible for removing your magic. This court is dismissed." 

As soon as those words leave her mouth, Yoochan is practically vaulting himself over the wooden banister in from of their bench, making a bee line towards Junhee and latching himself onto him. The youngest has been fairly clingy with Junhee since they've seen him get better. He supposes he can't blame him. Not when they all kind of do the same thing immediately after him. He sees Hyuna glance at them, but she smiles instead of scolds.

There's something comforting about group hugs. There's also something embarrassing about making a scene right after a court case. Seyoon himself hears a few scoffs as others exit, can feel the glare of Jaejin's coven piercing into him.

But as they leave a few minutes later, Junhee walking tall and proud in front of him, he can't help but feel thankful that this is the coven that he's spending the rest of his life with. 

("A coven can be five boyfriends." Byeongkwan laughs out as Donghun drives them home. Seyoon stares at Junhee, comfortably dozing in the passenger seat before sweeping his gaze over to the younger two fiddling with their phones right next to him)

A coven can be five boyfriends.

Now that's a sentiment that he can wholeheartedly agree with.

☽


End file.
